


In The City

by bewaretheboojum



Series: Dusk and Revenant [5]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Robin (Comics), Robin (Comics)
Genre: Angst, Kisses, M/M, Tim continues to be a cyborg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:28:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24543082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bewaretheboojum/pseuds/bewaretheboojum
Summary: Written for JayTimWeek2020 - Free day!Tim's been working non-stop on something for weeks. Something he won't tell Jason about. When Jason goes to check on Tim and maybe coax him into taking a nap, he finds that Tim's gone...
Relationships: Tim Drake/Jason Todd
Series: Dusk and Revenant [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1251809
Comments: 6
Kudos: 90
Collections: JayTimWeek





	In The City

The rain made it hard to see. It was that thick sort of drenching pour that was common in Gotham City in late spring. Large dark clouds hung heavy in the sky, hiding the tops of the tallest buildings. Jason found Tim just below the cloud line, the mist occasionally swirling around him where he sat on the edge of the roof of a skyscraper.

Tim was in his Dusk uniform, legs dangling out over the edge of the building and he looked down twenty-five stories below. He was staring out across the city, eyes fixed on the Bat-signal that was shining on the clouds.

Jason alit on the roof next to him. Tim didn't even look up, almost as if he had expected Jason.

"I've been looking for you," Jason said, trying to keep his voice casual as he sat down next to Tim.

Tilting his head to one side, Tim silently acknowledging what Jason said but didn't respond. Jason pretended to be looking down at the city like Tim, but he actually watched Tim out of the corner of his eye.

Tim had been working on something over the past few weeks. Something he wouldn't tell Jason about. He was staying up late, skipping meals, spending hour after hour bent over his computer as he worked tirelessly.

Jason had asked him what he was working on and Tim told him it was nothing he needed to worry about. He tried to peer over Tim's shoulder at the files he was working with, but all he could see was an incomprehensible wall of computer code. He tried seeing if Hitch would tell him what Tim was working on while Tim was asleep but Hitch wouldn't respond to the command. He tried seeing if he could find traces of Tim's work with the BatComputer, but that came up blank too. Tim was, as always, very good at covering his tracks.

It had been weeks now and Tim was quiet, working endlessly and totally focused.

Jason had gotten more and more worried by the day until he came aboard Hitch today and found that Tim had gone.

That was when the alarm set in and he immediately went out to find Tim.

"It's coming down pretty hard," Jason ventured after a moment.

Tim didn't answer, he just took a deep breath and kept his eyes on the city.

"You're uniform is looking a little soggy..." Jason tried again, voice light as he reached out a hand to run a gentle finger over Tim's collar.

Tim's expression shifted in a flash, changing from contemplative to angry in just a moment. He grabbed Jason's wrist and pulled it away from his collar with a glare.

"What's wrong. You worried my not-quite-human parts might get rusty?" Tim asked acidly, his expression alarmingly blank.

The tone of his voice, the anger in his eyes, took Jason by surprise. He pulled his arm out of Tim's grasp and shook his head.

"No, I'm worried about the very human parts of you that need to be warm and eat and sleep," Jason pointed out.

Tim shook his head and looked away, focusing back on the city.

"Tim--" Jason tried again and but didn't actually know what to follow that up with.

Tim's shoulders were slightly hunched over, his body coiled with tension. His mask hid his face but Jason knew there were dark circles under his eyes. His pale skin looked almost pallid in the low light of the rainy night.

"I'm worried about you," Jason finally finished softly, watching Tim but unsure what to say or do next.

Tim shut his eyes at that, as if trying to hide away from Jason, hide away from the city, hide away from the world. He shook his head slowly and swallowed hard before opening his eyes and looking at Jason.

The silver rings around Tim's eyes were thin and narrow, almost invisible around the dark blue of his irises. His mouth trembled slightly as he tried to decide how to answer Jason.

"I wrote... I wrote a predictive model," Tim began slowly. "An algorithm that will help catch potential signs of..." Tim broke off to let out a heavy sigh then, puffing out his breath with a resigned sort of shudder.

"Signs of what?" Jason asked, curiously.

"Attack," Tim finished simply, gesturing widely with one hand. "Disaster, crime sprees, outbreaks of violence. Things that... need our attention."

"A predictive... model...? How does that work?"

Tim slumped then, leaning back on his hands and kicking his legs against the side of the building.

"Yeah, I... I spent months looking at data, looking at precursors of alien attacks, civil unrest, crime sprees, and violence. I used them to build out the model and then today I tried to run it for the first time and..."

"And..." Jason prompted, feeling a sharp thrill of panic begin to run through him.

"And the program said it would take 14 hours to process the data."

"Oh..." Jason said numbly. "So... you're not out here because the world is about to end?"

"No," Tim said. "I'm here because it's been weeks since I've seen the city. I worked for days and days and days to find the best ways to protect it but I realized I barely remembered what they skyline looked like. I realized that if there had been an attack, if it was destroyed, I wouldn't remember the shape or smell or feel of it and..."

Tim trailed off with a shrug then.

"And you needed to remind yourself," Jason finished for him, his throat feeling tight.

"Yeah," Tim said simply. "Maybe I did."

"I get that. I do. It's just..."

Tim looked over to Jason as he trailed off.

"It's just," Jason finished, "that it smells really bad..."

Tim huffed out a laugh then, one barely audible under the muffling cloud cover.

"And it mostly feels slimy, especially when it rains."

Tim laughed again then and Jason moved closer to him, wrapping an arm around Tim's shoulders and pulling him close. Tim didn't resist.

"But it's a real stink and a real slime," Tim protested. "Not something we built in an algorithm or a lab."

"That's certainly true," Jason agreed.

They were silent for a long moment, Tim leaning into Jason, his head resting on Jason's shoulder as they sat in the pattering rain.

"Sometimes I feel... I feel so far away from all of this. So far from people and things and feelings and... Life... I guess."

"That's valid," Jason conceded. "You are pretty far away from it, to be fair. You spend most of your time on a living spaceship, hovering in a space between, working on projects I barely understand... I'm not surprised you feel that way."

"I used to be ok with feeling that way..." Tim said simply.

"Not anymore?" Jason asked.

"No... not anymore," Tim confirmed.

"You want to spend more time with us. On the ground?"

"I... I want to say yes but..."

"But what?"

"But last time I spent any real time 'on the ground' as you say, I was kidnapped by a mad scientist who hacked me apart and made me into... well this."

Jason tightened his arm around Tim's shoulder and pulled him in closer.

"I like this. I like you. I like spending time with you. And I think it would be good for both of us if we spent more of it on the ground eating ice cream and playing pranks on Batman."

Tim tilted his head slightly in acknowledgment, damp hair curling around his ears as rainwater dripped from his chin.

"Ok," Tim said. "Just..."

"I'll keep my eye out for any and all mad scientists," Jason promised.

Tim tilted his head back and smiled at Jason. The smile was small but clear on his face. It was the most beautiful thing Jason had seen in weeks. The worry was still there, just behind Tim's eyes but it finally felt that Tim was-- present. That Tim was here with him in this moment instead of miles away or deep in thoughts that Jason could never even begin to understand.

But here, now, in this moment, Tim was right there next to Jason.

And he was smiling.

And it was the sweetest sight.

Jason pressed a gentle kiss to Tim's mouth. He tasted like rain and mint tea, his mouth was soft and slick and just a touch too cool but...

But it was Tim and it was perfect. Sighing into the kiss, Tim wrapped and arm around Jason's neck and pulled him in close. He nuzzled gently at Jason's mouth and nipped at his lower lip in a way that made Jason shiver and groan.

"How-- How much longer until your program is done running?" Jason husked.

"Approximately eleven and a half hours," Tim answered, his voice sly and smug.

"Any chance I can coax you back to my place for... some... ice cream?"

"Ice cream, huh?" Tim teased.

"I mean... among other things."

"I could go for some ice cream," Tim mused."

"And maybe some other things?"

"Maybe those too."

"And then maybe a nap."

"Hot shower first?"

"Absolutely."

Tim stood then, looking down at Jason and offering him a hand. Jason took it and Tim helped him to his feet as he spoke.

"Then let's go home."

**Author's Note:**

> Let's be real, Jason probably doesn't have that ice cream. Let's hope Tim's in a forgiving mood~


End file.
